


Today We Will Change

by heroesheaven



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pokemon GO
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-18
Updated: 2016-07-18
Packaged: 2018-07-24 19:43:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7520698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heroesheaven/pseuds/heroesheaven
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Pokémon world has changed dramatically from what my mother has told me. I have to do something about that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Today We Will Change

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Today I became a Pokémon trainer.

My mother always told me of the peaceful days she remembers. The past was a more peaceful time, for both people and Pokémon. At ten years old, any kid could make the choice to choose their first friend and set out on an adventure. There were so many options after that; a trainer could challenge the Pokémon League, become a contest star, compete in athletic events with their team, some trainers even became movie stars, right beside their starter! Pokémarts and Pokécenters flourished in the economy, even department stores carried accessories for both trainers and their crew. Gyms were found in some towns, and a trainer needed to earn all eight badges from each city to challenge the Elite Four and Champion of their region. They sound like such nice times, but Mom reminds me that the best part of the world of the past was the very low crime rate.  


Today is very different. Instead of choosing to train Pokémon, the system that replaced the old government decides who will train, and who will not. Ten is the minimum age to be selected, but anyone could be taken out of their preferred lifestyle at any age, like our old banker, Mr. Mason. At fifty years old, he was forced to leave his job and join a team to “support our system’s cause”. Today there is no league of elite trainers, nor are there contests, or Pokéathlons. Gyms are much more numerous, and they no longer hand out badges. Not any trainer can battle there, either; only trainers who joined one of the three teams working from the system can go there. With the control that Instinct, Mystic, and Valor now have over just about every city in my region, the crime rate has gone up, too. Mom compares them to the infamous Team Rocket of the past.  


My mother does not want me to become a trainer, despite she was once a member of an Elite Four. “The system is too corrupt,” she tells me. I think she is right. I am fifteen, and that makes me unlikely to be selected right now. Ten year olds are more likely to go than teenagers; the system must think they’re easier to manipulate before they go into a rebellious phase. While I have more freedom than trainers, I am still held down by whatever team has taken over the town. I have to go to the store to buy milk, but first I have to check my phone to see the status my town is in. Stops and gyms are mostly highlighted in red: today is a Valor day. I take out a small box from the spoon drawer, open it up, and place a silver pin on my left breast pocket on my shirt. It shines red when the light hits it. If I happen to be stopped by any Team Valor grunts, the pin will let them know I do not want any trouble. Just in case, though, I also hide a blue pin in my bag before I leave. Team Mystic is more likely to attack while I am gone, and I don’t want trouble from them, either.  


My trip was safe, thankfully, and I was not stopped by anyone. Once home, I can relax and put the pins away. I am eating cereal and watching the midday news when the door knocks. Mom answers it. I cannot hear the conversation she is having with the man at the door, but I recognize him as Professor Willow, the professor who studies all aspects of Pokémon biology a few towns over. Mom calls my name, but she sounds a little bit sad. I think I know what is about to happen. “Hello there, young one! I am Professor Willow, and I’d like you to step outside with me for a little bit. I won’t take up too much of your time, I promise.” I nod and follow him. He hands me some Pokéballs and points out three creatures in my front yard. “Choose anyone you like, just try throwing the ball at it.” Mom taught me about catching Pokémon before, and she said every smart trainer would lower its health or put it to sleep before throwing the ball. I asked the professor about that, but he shook his head and laughed, “That’s old fashion. Our new balls subdue them much easier, and much faster so you don’t have to do that!” I choose the Bulbasaur, and sure enough, without harming him whatsoever, he is trapped inside the Pokéball.  


The professor smiles, “Let’s show your mother! She must be proud!” Mom keeps a smile plastered on as he explains that I will be leaving home today, but after he is far from our house, she breaks down crying. “Please,” she begs me, “do something about the system! I know you and Bulbasaur can change things!” I promise her I’ll do my best, and I will. I don’t like the system either. I pack my bags and hug her goodbye. Today I became a Pokémon trainer, but I don’t feel like I’m embarking on a grand adventure. I feel like a slave.  


The first place I must go is the pavilion on the other side of town where an orientation is being held. Professor Willow is speaking, of course, and he explains how being a trainer works to the small crowd. “You are all level one right at this moment,” he says, “but catch enough Pokémon and you will reach new levels, and then you will find more powerful creatures, and someday join whichever team you please!” A boy standing next to me smiles, and by the way he poses in that moment, right hand at his side and left hand extended out, I can observe that he wants to join Team Valor. Willow continues speaking, saying that if we feel overwhelmed by all the Pokémon we carry, we can always transfer them to him, and he will reward us for our efforts. He explains Pokéstops, which are stores that give us anything from eggs, potions, but more earnestly Pokéballs, for free. From what I gathered from the orientation, our jobs as trainers is to catch Pokémon and give them to Willow. I look at Bulbasaur’s ball: I will never transfer him.  


After his speech is over, new trainers scatter everywhere, eager to find Pokémon and catch them. I don’t stray too far before I am approached by a girl in a white hat. She introduces herself and asks if I have any group to travel with, and upon hearing that I am not, she invites me to go with her and her friends. “It’s too dangerous to travel alone, you might be hurt!” I reluctantly join. Her friends are a boy who wears glasses, and another boy who has many freckles on his face. We walk together quite some ways before anyone spots a Pokémon. The girl in the hat pulls a device on her wrist up to her eye level, “Weedle, CP 10!”  


“Catch it!” The freckled boy encourages her.  


“No, it’s only CP 10! It’s too weak, let it go.” The other boy in glasses disagrees. They began arguing, but the girl ignores them and catches it. Soon after nicknaming it, she releases it and sketches a picture of it. The boys stop arguing after a minute, and then we’re back on our way. We run into more Pokémon, and I observe that the girl nicknames all of them, the freckled boy transfers any weaker ones asap, and glasses boy ignores any Pokémon with CP lower than 10. I try to refrain from catching too many, my alibi being I don’t want Bulbasaur to be jealous. They laugh and continue traveling to stops. By dark, I know I have been accepted in their friend group.  


___  


A few weeks later, I am much better acquainted with them. The boy in glasses plays trumpet, the freckled boy used to be on student council before becoming a trainer, and the girl in the hat is an artist, I learn. I am slightly more friendly with her, and I contemplate telling her about my plan to defy the system by refusing to join a team. Unfortunately, I did not have the chance to do so. I should have acted quicker, because as soon as we were all level 5 trainers, my three friends were much excited to join a team. Quickly, we ran to the nearest gym. Willow was waiting for us there, and I am the only one who thinks that’s odd. “Well done, young trainers! You have become strong enough to join one of the three powerful teams, and I encourage you to join whichever one suits you best!” He calls the team leaders, and they arrive promptly. “Please, do give these aspiring trainers a small introduction.”  


A friendly looking man steps up first, “Hey! The name’s Spark- the leader of Team Instinct.” He holds out his hand for each of us to shake. He explains that Team Instinct’s deal is to trust our Pokémon in battle, knowing that doing so will win any battle. He also tells us that Instinct believes that a Pokémon’s power is determined by the way the hatch and how they are raised. Team Instinct consists of more breeders than the other two teams. I just remember them as the not-as-hostile team. When they had control of my hometown, which was very seldom, I did not have to worry about pins. Their team members were nonthreatening, but still comparable to the Jehovah’s Witnesses that came to my door, trying to convince me of their beliefs. Not that they came to my house, but I have been corned in a bookstore and given a free book about the benefits of being impulsive.  


The person standing next to him steps up, shaking their head. “I am Blanche, leader of Team Mystic.” They do not shake our hands, instead explaining why they and their team disagree with Team Instinct. Blanche tells us that their team believes Pokémon battles are won through strategy and keeping a level head. They also study evolution, and says Mystic team members most always evolve their team with the belief that evolving them makes them stronger. My past experiences with Team Mystic involves being stopped by a member, having him ramble on to me that I shouldn’t buy the knock-off brand of laundry detergent because the name brand smells better, and giving me coupons so I wouldn’t have to ‘suffer with less than perfectly clean clothes’. Most of them seem to be stuck up.  


Lastly, a lady in a leather jacket steps up, “I’m Candela- Team Valor’s leader!” When she shakes my hand, her grip is very firm and she makes eye contact, making me a little bit nervous. She impresses us with tales of Valor’s many victories in battle before explain what her team is all about- becoming the strongest of the strong. She tells us Team Valor believes any Pokémon can reach their full potential through vigorous training. Team Valor has much more trainers interested in taking over gyms- and the towns they are in, consequently, than the other two teams. A Valor controlled city is a scary city, I remember. Their teammates police everyone’s actions, and they all spoke with loud voices. They prided in being strong, and one time a team member bought me protein supplements because I looked like my thin arms were struggling with my shopping bag.  


With all the introductions over, the professor turns to us and asks who we will join. Glasses boy approaches Candela, who smiles proudly and pins Team Valor’s symbol, legendary bird Moltres, to his shirt. Freckles boy approaches Blanche, and they hand him a pin bearing Team Mystic’s symbol, legendary bird Articuno, after congratulating him for making ‘the smart choice’. Hat girl was unsure before arriving at the gym, but she confidently walks up to Spark. He pats her back and gives her Team Instinct’s pin, which bears their symbol of the final legendary bird, Zapdos. I’m next, but I’m shaking ever so slightly and my palms are sweaty, clenched in a fist at my side. I tear up a little bit, but I'm not at all sad. I’m not ready.  


“What’s wrong?” Willow asks me. I try to search for my voice, but it’s not there. I did not prepare to face the three prestigious leaders of the system today, and I am certainly in no shape to tell them that I will not be joining any team. I look down at the white tile floor, observing how seamless and clean it is despite how dirt packed the bottom of every trainer’s shoes are. I look at the walls, normally clear but right now they are pulsing slowly, shifting the color from yellow, to blue, to red. Every level 5 trainer has to choose one of those teams. I look up at Candela. She has a slightly concerned look on her face, which I’m sure costs more money than I have in my savings, at least with all the expensive, top of the line makeup products on it. Even with a small frown, her eyes blaze with an intense fire behind them. Then I look at Blanche. They look worried, probably wondering if their cold first impression gave a potential team member an anxiety attack. Rumor has it that they are very self-conscious. They still keep calm despite the tension of the situation, I can tell from the stable look in their eyes. I look at Spark. He looks like he wants to offer a word of advice, but at a loss because he cannot speak without bias. He is about to say something, but he closes his mouth and resumes a tall posture. Through his eyes, I see his mind is clouded with all sorts of thoughts.  


By the time Professor Willow asks me again, I have calmed down. I tell him I’m unsure of what team to join, and it’s not entirely a lie. I wouldn’t know how to choose over my new friends. “Alright, that’s ok. How about you spend the next few days with each of the team leaders?” They look surprised at his suggestion: nothing like this has ever happened. Any other trainer who could not decide within an hour would have their allegiance decided by the system, but Willow is making an exception for me. I wonder if it has to do with my mother being a member of the Elite Four of the past. Nonetheless, the leaders do not argue with the professor. With that decided, we can move on. My friends and I exit the gym, but the leaders follow us out. Blanche explains that new recruits must first report to team headquarters for orientation before returning back to normal training. My friends nod and offer me support and a hug before they are escorted by their team leaders. I wave them goodbye.  


I’m left alone by the pavilion where I first met my friends. “They’ll be back soon,” I tell myself, but they’ll be different. They’ll be members of the system. I sit down and let Bulbasaur out. He stretches his legs before laying down next to me. We’re very close, and other trainers marvel at us when I have him walking beside me. Trainers seldom seek companionship with Pokémon these days. Even the teams of the old days had their companions; Mom told me of a time when a Rocket member broke down crying over her Rattata who lost the battle, not because they lost, but because she was a young trainer and this was the first time Rattata had fainted and she was worried sick. But now, Pokémon are for studying, battling, and to be shipped away or exterminated if unwanted. I remember my promise to Mom. I won’t fail her, and neither will Bulbasaur. We’ll break the system if we must.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I must have a knack for turning innocent things into dystopian interpretations, I did the same thing with Tri Force Heroes. I'm actually addicted to this game and it's making me exercise! Nice legs, here I come! Hat girl is me, and the two boys are my friends I go "hunting" with. Shameful, I know, but Pokémon is such a personal thing, I wouldn't know how else to make a trainer without basing it on a real life trainer. Really, Pokémon is the thing that inspired me to learn how to ride a bike when I was 11 and I thought I would be the only fifth grader who couldn't ride a bike. 
> 
> Anyhoo, please let me know if you'd like to read more of this! I have lots more planned, but there's no use in posting it if nobody is interested.   
> Thank you!


End file.
